Secretly Plotting
by Samantha Gold
Summary: A challenge fic written during Season four. Everyone's keeping something from Buffy, but what is it? (Sorry, I suck at summaries.)


Title

**Title:** Secretly Plotting  
**Author: **Samantha Melissa Gold  
**E-mail: **[SpikesLittleGoddess@hotmail.com][1]   
**Disclaimer: **Joss created them and therefore owns them, whereas I do not. Of course it doesn't matter that I'd treat them much better…  
**Spoilers:** Let's just say everything so far to be safe. Oh, but Oz never left.  
**Author's Note: **Response to Annie's challenge. These are the requirements:  
_*Must be B/A  
*Riley and Angel have to meet  
*Riley and Buffy have to have a kiss  
*Xander has to have purple hair  
*Kate and Riley end up either killing each other or getting together at the end  
*Must involve the following items: scissors, glue, and a bow.  
*Buffy has to get Angel to fast dance to Cher's Believe with her  
*Willow has to somehow turn Oz into a frog  
*Riley has to either shave his legs or dance in a pink tutu  
*And it has to have this line: "So that's what it looks like."_  
**Dedication:** For Annie because she asked for it.

Buffy woke up to sunlight streaming through her dorm room window. Opening her eyes, she sat up and stretched in bed.

"Ooh, Buffy! You're awake!" Willow cried happily.

"Yeah…I am…What is it, Willow?" Buffy asked cautiously.

"This," Willow cried, as she dropped a frog into Buffy's lap.

Buffy shrieked in surprise, then calmed when she realized that it was just a frog. "Um, Will? What's with the frog?"

"It's Oz…he was helping me with this spell last night…" Willow explained unhappily. "Last time I substitute lizard for frog I'll tell you that," she muttered.

"Okay…so what do you want me to do?" Buffy asked her slowly. "Maybe you should ask Giles or something? I don't know anything about magic."

Willow shook her head. "I can't, he's in LA, remember?"

"LA! What's he doing there?!" Buffy snapped.

"Oops, of course you don't remember…you weren't supposed to know," Willow muttered sheepishly.

"What's he doing in LA?" Buffy repeated slowly.

"Did I mention that Xander called while you were asleep?" Willow tried, nervously. "Because he did and he wants to see you…Oh, and Riley called earlier too…I think he said he'd be over there…"

Buffy shook her head and decided to drop the issue for the time being. "Fine, I'll go…" She muttered as she crawled out of bed and got dressed.

**********

Xander opened the door for Buffy. "Hey, it's the Buffster!"

"Hey Xand…Xand!" Buffy cried.

"Yeah?"

"Your hair…it's purple…Your hair is purple!" Buffy cried.

"Yeah, do you like it? Anya liked it," Xander told her.

"Um…it's interesting," Buffy replied. "So Willow said that Riley might be here?"

"Um, yeah…only he's not," Xander answered. The truth of the matter was that he didn't have any reason to have Buffy over that had been merely Willow's cover plan to keep Buffy from figuring out why Giles was in LA. They had hoped to get Riley over also, but he had made plans to train with his commando buddies and hadn't been able to make it.

"So what do you need me for?" Buffy asked after a few minutes.

"Um…" Xander paused for a second, they hadn't gotten that far in their planning. "Hey! It looks like Riley could make it!" He cried happily as he saw Fish boy walking on the sidewalk in front of his house through the window.

"Yeah?" Buffy asked as she turned around just as the doorbell rang. They opened the door for Riley. "Hey Riley," she said with a smile.

"Hey baby," he said softly, trying to sound cool, though it came across really lame.

Buffy just smiled and gave him a light peck on the lips. "So what's up, Riley?" She asked.

"Professor Walsh has us doing some kind of special training tonight, I have no idea what it's about…Do you want to come watch?"

"Sure," Buffy answered, smiling.

**********

"You're joking, right?" Riley gaped.

"No, suit up, Agent Finn," Walsh responded easily.

"Tell me this is a nightmare," muttered Riley as he looked at the bubble gum pink tutu that he was being asked to don. He sighed as he took it into the change room and changed into it. He came out and noticed that all of the other members of the Initiative were wearing the same outfits, though it was little consolation.

"All right, line up," Walsh instructed as she flipped on the music. He recognized it from the Nutcracker and groaned quietly before joining in the ballet.

Just then, Buffy walked in…and promptly burst into fits of laughter.

Riley's face turned red, though he forced himself to continue dancing. _I'm never going to live this down,_ he thought gloomily.

**********

Buffy returned to the dorm a few hours later completely exhausted from laughing so hard. As she closed the door to the dorm, Willow stood up from where she had been sitting on the floor, researching for a way to turn Oz back to normal.

"Hey, any luck, Will?" Buffy asked.

Willow shook her head. "I found this one spell, but it didn't work properly."

"What happened?" Willow pointed and Buffy grimaced. "What's that supposed to be?" She questioned, gesturing to a pair of scissors stuck in the carpeting, a bow tied around it's "neck", the entire thing covered in glue.

"That? That's the new and improved Oz," Willow answered with a sigh.

"Maybe he'll be better by morning?" Buffy suggested hopefully.

"Yeah, maybe…" Willow sighed again. "Oh yeah, before I forget, Giles called about twenty minutes ago."

"He did? What did he say?" Buffy asked.

"He said to warn you that Angel was coming back to Sunnydale with him, though he didn't say why. He also told me to tell you to be up and over at his house by seven in the morning tomorrow, okay?"

Buffy sighed. "Yeah, okay…"

**********

Buffy sleepily knocked on Giles' door, bright and early that morning. Giles answered the door and let her in. She came in to find Angel and Spike playing a game of cards on Giles' coffee table.

"Hey," Angel said softly as he looked up.

"Oh great, now I've got to sit through you two making eyes at each other again…" Spike lamented.

"Shut up, Spike," Buffy told him tiredly.

"Oh that's right, you're all over him now, aren't you? You even got yourself that pansy fish boy," Spike leered.

"I said shut up!" Buffy yelled. Everyone looked at her in surprise. She merely sighed and collapsed on the couch. "So anyone care to tell me what the hell is going on?"

"Well-" Giles started, but he was interrupted by a knock at the door. "Who could that be?" He murmured as he went off to answer it.

"So you're Buffy," a blond woman spoke up after Giles had left.

Buffy looked up, just noticing the other woman. "Um…hi," she answered uncomfortably. "Yeah, that's me. And you are?"

"I'm Kate," she answered with a smile. "I work with Angel."

"Okay…" Buffy trailed off. "So what brings you to the Hellmouth?"

"Just here for moral support," she answered truthfully.

Angel's head shot up and he shook his head at Kate, gesturing that she be quiet. Unfortunately for him, Buffy caught and interpreted the look.

"Angel? Someone want to tell me moral support for what?"

Spike laughed. "You bloody blew it, Angel…hey, what are you doing here anyway, peaches?"

Angel sighed. "Look, you'll all get your answers…just wait until Giles gets back," he responded.

As if on cue, Giles reentered the room…followed by Riley.

"Um, hi, Riley…what are you doing here?" Buffy asked her boyfriend in surprise.

"I thought we could go for a picnic today," Riley answered. "Your friends told me I could find you here…and I just realized that I don't know most of the people in this room…"

Buffy sighed. "Angel, Kate," she said pointing out the ensouled vampire and LA cop without bothering to look at them. "Angel, Kate, this is Riley."

"Hi, Riley," Kate said warmly.

"Hi!" Riley said perkily. He glanced at Angel. "So are you her brother or something? She never told me she had a brother."

Angel shook his head wearily. "I'm not her brother," he answered. He had already sized the kid up and decided that Riley was a loser. Which was why he didn't understand why he was hanging around with Buffy and her friends.

"Um…don't tell me, let me guess! You're too old to be her nephew…are you a younger uncle of hers? Childhood friend?"

Buffy sighed. Just what she needed, Riley embarrassing her again. "Angel's my ex," she told him tiredly.

"You two used to date?" Riley asked in a small voice. Then he remembered that 'ex' meant that they no longer did and that she was with him now. And that was good. So he laughed. "Buffy and I are dating now."

Angel fought back the urge to roll his eyes. The guy was as annoying as Hell! And he, for one, should know, seeing as he spent a fair bit of time there.

Spike rolled his eyes in his sire's place. "Slayer, tell me again why you're dating fish boy? You really have poor taste in men! I mean, I thought Peaches was bad, but the guy you let take a poke and now him…"

"Spike, I'm going to say this one last time, and then I'll stake you myself. Shut the hell up!" Buffy answered in a low, threatening voice.

"Why do you call me 'fish boy'?" Riley asked quietly. "That's not very nice, you know. My mama always says, 'Riley,' she says, 'you just don't make fun of people, 'cause it's wrong, my boy. And don't you let nobody call you names, you hear me?' And I says, 'Yes, mama, I hear you.'"

Angel looked over at Buffy who had turned red with mortification. Even though he knew that her choice for a normal boyfriend had definitely not been a good one, he couldn't help feeling sorry for and wanting to save her from more humiliation at the hands of the hick she was dating.

"That's great, Riley," he said dryly. "Giles?"

Buffy seized the opportunity to take the focus off the imbecile that she had somehow managed to get roped into dating. "Yeah, what's with all the secrecy, guys? You mind telling me what's been going on?"

"Um…" Giles looked at Riley, not sure he wanted the boy to be around while they spilled their news.

Angel looked at her, pleading with his eyes.

Buffy would have none of it. She was still pretty angry with Angel and really didn't want to do him any favours. And Riley, as much of an idiot as he was, was still her boyfriend. Granted, she didn't always like him… "Anything you want to tell me can be said in front of Riley," she responded firmly.

Giles looked at Angel. "Angel?"

Angel sighed. "Fine," he agreed half-heartedly. "You tell her, Giles."

"Tell me what?" Buffy was becoming impatient.

"Err, Angel's curse has been somewhat…modified," Giles answered carefully.

"Modified how?" She immediately asked suspiciously.

"Curse? What's going on?" Riley asked in confusion.

"Just shut up," Buffy snapped. "Giles, how was the curse modified?"

"Well, um, you see…"

"Out with it already!"

"He can go out in the daylight, there was a protection clause entered to replace the other one…so he can, well, um, he can…" Giles stumbled through the explanation.

"You can?" Buffy asked, a hint of hope in her voice as she looked over at her lover.

Angel nodded slowly, feeling self-conscious and vulnerable over the information that he was sharing with her. She had moved on, right? She didn't want him any more…

So why was she suddenly in his arms, her mouth on his? Why was she kissing him and why did he feel himself kissing her back?

"Hey!" Riley cried upset, startled that his girlfriend was suddenly kissing her ex-boyfriend in front of him. Neither Buffy nor Angel made any motion that they even heard him. "Buffy, what about me?" He tried.

"Give it up, Fish boy, she's not yours, she never was. They're two of love's bitches, the Slayer and Peaches, you might as well give it up and go home," Spike told him cruelly.

Riley shook his head vehemently. "She has to honour me!" He cried. "There's only one way to save my honour now…kill them both!" He ran at them.

Before he reached them, a hand swooped out and flipped him. He wheeled on the interference: Kate.

"What kind of freak are you?" She asked.

Riley pulled out knife as he stood up and before she could react, he stabbed her with it. "A strong one," he answered haughtily.

She gasped as the knife pierced her flesh, then felt anger surge through her at the kid's confidence. "Asshole," she breathed, clutching her side.

He laughed. "Eat me, bitch," he answered smugly as he stabbed her again.

"Eat this," she hissed, pulling out her gun and firing it. The bullet hit Riley square in the middle of the forehead, killing him instantly.

Buffy and Angel had broken apart by this time and were watching the scenario unfold with morbid fascination, being too stunned to move.

She smiled at Angel. "Wouldn't want your newfound happiness to take a nosedive, would we?" She grinned, then she died.

Giles walked over and gently placed his fingers on her pulse. "She's dead," he whispered helplessly.

Spike glanced over at Riley's body. "So that's what it looks like," he murmured, grinning.

"That's what what looks like?" Buffy asked, brow furrowed in confusion.

"Just something I've been wanting to see for a long time…" Spike grinned again.

**********

_One year later, _

Buffy and Angel sat cuddled together at the latest frat party. A familiar song came on.

_Love after love after love after love after love…_

Buffy grinned. "Angel, let's dance!" She cried, standing up and pulling him with her.

"Come on, Buffy," he pleaded.

"No, you come on," she said, taking his hand and dragging him onto the dance floor.

They began dancing to Cher's "Believe" happily. When the song ended, they decided that it was time to leave. After all, they had _**better**_ things to do…

Stepping out into the cool night air, Buffy took Angel's hand and they headed back to her dorm room. Along the way, they bumped into Willow walking Oz the dog.

"Still haven't had any luck turning him back human?" Buffy asked.

"No," Willow admitted. "But at least he's not a cockroach anymore!" She added happily.

Buffy and Angel couldn't help but laugh, then they returned home and went to bed, though they didn't sleep all night…

**THE END**

   [1]: mailto:SpikesLittleGoddess@hotmail.com



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